Tuesday, May 29, 2012

things you can do to help new moms

i saw someone pin this article on pintrest about how to help a new mom. it got me thinking about what really helped me when i was a new mom- what did i like the most? so, incase you are wondering, here was what i liked the most when i was a brand new mommy the first month or son.

1- the biggest and best surprise i got as a new mommy was to come home to a spotless house. i went into labor 2 weeks early, and had not done laundry, dishes, made my bed, picked up my clothes, cleaned the bathroom, taken out the trash- nothing. my house was a disaster the day i left to go to the hospital. i cannot tell you how many hours i spent worrying about how i was going to come home with a new baby, and come home to a dirty house. how was i going to ever get it clean with a new baby to take care of, and my body aching and trying to heal? well, my husband and best friend schemed. he gave my best friend, Ally, the keys to our apartment. she offered to clean it all while we were in the hospital. neither of them told me, or even hinted to me that this would be happening. kevin was with me at the hospital the whole time so i just knew i would have to come home to clean.

well, the minute we walked into our house, i wouldn't believe my eyes. i had tears rolling down my face, as i walked through every room. it smelled soo good (she had plugged in my scentsy) and was spotless. you could even see lines on the carpet from where she vacuumed. that was the best gift i received, by far. i was embarrassed that my best friend cleaned all my crap up- and that i couldn't have kept it clean in the first place, but i was sooo grateful that she could look beyond my flaws and help me out in the area that was most needed. thank you ally, i will never EVER forget that.

2- meals. no matter what the mom says- 'oh my husband likes to cook' 'my mom will be in town' 'oh we will be just fine'... TAKE THEM MEALS! even if your husband likes to cook, he will be too tired to cook. even if your mom is in town, she wont be wanting to cook, she will be helping you and the baby. and you really won't want to cook the first little while. you will want to sleep, spend time with your baby, and relax. i had meals lined up for 4 days. i am so grateful for those 4 days of meals, although it would have been nice to have a whole week! haha.

my visiting teachers brought me a meal, as well as my friends kilee and eliza who brought me something i could freeze incase i had enough meals that week brought to me but didn't want to cook next week when the meals stopped. that was a blessing! another girl in my ward brought me some homemade soup in a big mason jar. my friend jena ordered pizza to our house. and boy oh boy, it was goooood! really, the meals were a blessing and I am so grateful for those. my visiting teacher also brought paper plates and cups because she knew we wouldn't want to be doing dishes. SCORE! that was awesome.

3- my mom and sister came over one night to play with mia while i took a shower. i could have put mia in her bouncer by the shower (which is usually what I do) and taken a quick one, but it was soo nice to have them there to play with her so i could take my time showering and relaxing. if you can, go hang out with the new moms kids so she can do whatever it is she wants to do/get done at home, and doesn't have to worry about being quick about it to get back to the kids/baby.

4- random visits. my best friend ally always randomly would text me and say she missed me and the baby. she would come over and just snuggle mia, and give me a little break. sometimes new moms only talk to their baby all day, and could use a little adult time. so although i wasn't always feeling up to getting out, it was nice when people came for a visit and i could have a conversation with them.

those are a few things that I loved the most. what help did you love as a new mom?

1 comment:

Those four things were probably the same exact four things that I appreciated most. I loved all the random visitors (I hate being alone with just the baby, it can get pretty lonely sometimes), meals, help with cleaning, etc.

I also appreciate when someone thinks about you and visits you after the newness wares off. After the first few weeks of awes and oohs over the baby, it's so easy to fall into a depression. I always needed someone to come over and hang out or invite me to go do something. Having people help you to get out of the house and stay busy is so important after the first few weeks.